Public perception and attitude towards dengue prevention activity and response to dengue early warning in Malaysia.

An early warning system for dengue is meant to predict outbreaks and prevent dengue cases by aiding timely decision making and deployment of interventions. However, only a system which is accepted and utilised by the public would be sustainable in the long run. This study aimed to explore the perception and attitude of the Malaysian public towards a dengue early warning system. The sample consisted of 847 individuals who were 18 years and above and living/working in the Petaling District, an area adjacent to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. A questionnaire consisting of personal information and three sub-measures of; i) perception, ii) attitude towards dengue early warning and iii) response towards early warning; was distributed to participants. We found that most of the respondents know about dengue fever (97.1%) and its association with climate factors (90.6%). Most of them wanted to help reduce the number of dengue cases in their area (91.5%). A small percentage of the respondents admitted that they were not willing to be involved in public activities, and 64% of them admitted that they did not check dengue situations or hotspots around their area regularly. Despite the high awareness on the relationship between climate and dengue, about 45% of respondents do not know or are not sure how this can be used to predict dengue. Respondents would like to know more about how climate data can be used to predict a dengue outbreak (92.7%). Providing more information on how climate can influence dengue cases would increase public acceptability and improve response towards climate-based warning system. The most preferred way of communicating early warning was through the television (66.4%). This study shows that the public in Petaling District considers it necessary to have a dengue warning system to be necessary, but more education is required.

Genetic association of LMAN2L gene in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder and its interaction with ANK3 gene polymorphism.

Recent studies have shown that bipolar disorder (BPD) and schizophrenia (SZ) share some common genetic risk factors. This study aimed to examine the association between candidate single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) identified from genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and risk of BPD and SZ. A total of 715 patients (244 BPD and 471 SZ) and 593 controls were genotyped using the Sequenom MassARRAY platform. We showed a positive association between LMAN2L (rs6746896) and risk of both BPD and SZ in a pooled population (P-value=0.001 and 0.009, respectively). Following stratification by ethnicity, variants of the ANK3 gene (rs1938516 and rs10994336) were found to be associated with BPD in Malays (P-value=0.001 and 0.006, respectively). Furthermore, an association exists between another variant of LMAN2L (rs2271893) and SZ in the Malay and Indian ethnic groups (P-value=0.003 and 0.002, respectively). Gene-gene interaction analysis revealed a significant interaction between the ANK3 and LMAN2L genes (empirical P=0.0107). Significant differences were shown between patients and controls for two haplotype frequencies of LMAN2L: GA (P=0.015 and P=0.010, for BPD and SZ, respectively) and GG (P=0.013 for BPD). Our study showed a significant association between LMAN2L and risk of both BPD and SZ.

Association of FTO, LEPR and MTHFR gene polymorphisms with metabolic syndrome in schizophrenia patients receiving antipsychotics.

AIM: The occurrence of metabolic syndrome (MS) in schizophrenia patients receiving long-term antipsychotics (APs) contributes to their high mortality rate. We aimed to determine whether genetic polymorphisms of identified candidate genes are associated with MS in our study population. MATERIALS & METHODS: We recruited 206 schizophrenia patients receiving AP treatment for at least a year. Cross-sectional measurements of weight, height, blood pressure, waist and hip circumference, and other lipid profiles were recorded. Patient DNA was genotyped for 16 candidate gene polymorphisms. RESULTS: Of these patients, 59.7% were found to have MS while 40.3% did not. All metabolic parameters were significantly different between the two groups. Only three of the 16 polymorphisms studied showed significant association with MS; rs9939609 of the FTO gene confers risk for MS (odds ratio [OR]: 1.73, 95% CI: 1.07-2.78, p = 0.026), while rs1137101 of the LEPR gene (OR: 0.47, 95% CI: 0.28-0.80, p = 0.005) and rs1801133 of the MTHFR gene (OR: 0.59, 95% CI: 0.35-0.99, p = 0.049) are protective against MS. CONCLUSION: Polymorphisms of the FTO, LEPR and MTHFR genes may play a role in MS in Malaysian schizophrenia patients receiving long-term treatment with APs.

Association of ADRA2A and MTHFR gene polymorphisms with weight loss following antipsychotic switching to aripiprazole or ziprasidone.

OBJECTIVES: Various genetic polymorphisms have been reported to be associated with antipsychotic-induced weight gain. In this study, we aimed to determine whether risk polymorphisms in 12 candidate genes are associated with reduction in body mass index (BMI) of patients following switching of antipsychotics to aripiprazole or ziprasidone. METHODS: We recruited 115 schizophrenia patients with metabolic abnormalities and who have been on at least 1 year treatment with other antipsychotics; they were then switched to either aripiprazole or ziprasidone. They were genotyped, and their BMI monitored for 6 months. RESULTS: Significant associations with reduction in BMI at 6 months following switching were found in two of these genes: with rs1800544 of the ADRA2A gene (CC + CG [-0.32 ± 1.41 kg/m²] vs GG [-1.04 ± 1.63 kg/m²], p = 0.013) and with rs1801131 of the MTHFR gene (AA [-0.36 ± 1.53] vs AC + CC [-1.07 ± 1.53], p = 0.015). CONCLUSION: The study data indicated that carriage of the ADRA2A rs1800544 GG genotype and the MTHFR rs1801131 C allele are associated with BMI reduction in this population following switching of antipsychotics to aripiprazole and ziprasidone.